TechCrunch Startup News This startup will send 1,000 people’s ashes to space — affordably — in 2027
Jan 26, 2026
An engineer-turned-founder plans to send up to 1,000 people’s ashes on a 2027 Falcon 9 rideshare using a CubeSat. The story covers his NASA and Blue Origin background and the family ritual that inspired the idea. Listeners hear how an affordable $249 option, one-gram limits, sun-synchronous orbit tracking, and a planned atmospheric burnup shape the service.
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Personal Moment Sparked The Startup
- Ryan Mitchell started Space Beyond after a family ash-spreading ceremony left him asking, "now what?".
- He combined personal experience and engineering background to build the Ashes to Space idea.
Rideshares Democratize Memorial Space Access
- Falling launch costs and rideshare missions made affordable memorial space services feasible.
- Mitchell used CubeSats and a Falcon 9 rideshare to scale sending many ashes at low cost.
Price With Empathy, Not Exploitation
- Price services accessibly instead of exploiting customers during vulnerable moments.
- Mitchell deliberately keeps costs low and avoids maximizing investor returns.